Strange lights in sky seen in Summit Hill and in Mahoning

People throughout the Summit Hill and Mahoning area saw four circles of light in the sky last night that rotated in a circular formation for several minutes.

The lights reflected off of the low clouds in the evening sky, but it was difficult to tell what they were or from which direction they originated. Many people did watch and wonder what their purpose was though as they seemed close by yet did not originate from town.

While it was difficult to pinpoint their origin strictly by observing them in the sky, a quick drive to the west end of the hilltop community provided some quick answers. The lights appeared to originate from the stripping pits west of the borough. An observation of the area revealed that while the light beams were quite faint from other areas of town, they were brightly shining from their point of origin below the surface level in the LC&N property's pit.

The lights, however, were determined to have come from the vicinity of the Tamaqua Public Library.

The lights people saw on Tuesday night are flood lights owned by Mike Estojak of The Tire Pros in Tamaqua. The lights were used outside of the Tamaqua Library on North Railroad Street around 7 p.m., to draw attention to the library's open house, which was being held in conjunction with its 75th anniversary. The event was open to the public.

The lights were bright enough to be seen in the Mahoning Valley and Andreas areas from eyewitness reports, but people can rest easy knowing their origin was less dramatic than what our imagination might lead us to believe.